Summary & Main Points of discourse by Shaykh Abdul Mueed Saheb (Hafizahullah) of Sukkur – Pakistan
Sunday, 19 January 2020 – Masjid Umar – Queens Road – London – UK
1. As time passes the attractions of this world continue to increase – there was a time when people lived lives of contentment – the times we live in are devoid of contentment. It is the era of greed, temptation and competition. Our competitiveness should be in good deeds and not about the world.
2. The nafs and ego tempts a person to procrastinate good deeds, yet a small deed done with sincerity will weigh heavy on the scales in comparison to other big deeds. The value of good deeds will be truly realised in the herafter.
3. Hakeemul Ummat Hadhrat Maulana Thanwi rahimuhullah used to advise “Apni neki par naaz na ho” – one should never feel proud about one’s good work. Nabi sallallahu alayhi sallam taught us to seek forgiveness even after doing good deeds. Remain humble no matter what you achieve.
4. It is mentioned in a Hadith, “Love for the world is the root of all evil.”Love for the world is the first illness to take root in the heart, all other maladies occur as a result of this malady. With love for the world, the concern and desire for the hereafter dwindles to the extent that a person fears death – a person begins to detest death. Yet we have been taught to constantly revise the the lesson of the death – to remember death daily. The Hadith states “Whoever loves to meet Allah, Allah loves to meet him.”
5. Therefore, we should develop the desire to meet Allah Ta’ala – As a result of this desire, Allah will draw us to him. Allah draws to Himself whosoever he wishes and and guides to Him one who desires His closeness.
6. We are not free to do as we please in world. According to the Hadith, the world is a prison for a believer. In prison a person has rules and limitations. Similarly, a believer in this world is governed by the laws of Islam. A believer shall be released from the ‘prison’ of this world upon death.
7. The Qur’an says, “O Soul of obedience, return to your Lord in a state of peace and happiness.” (Surah al-Fajr) – Last year my respected mother passed away. In the last night of her life she was repeatedly reciting this verse, as though a call was being made to her and she was responding to it. This was her inner state close to her death, and her condition was now becoming apparent. She passed away reciting these verses. This achievement at the end is a result of a life long effort of obedience and good deeds. My dear mother use to recite approximately 15 Juz of the Qur’an daily and in Ramadan she use to recite the entire Qur’an daily.
8. Becoming obedient doesn’t not mean one has to forsake the world completely. The world is detested when it causes one to forget Allah Ta’ala. No matter how wealthy a person maybe, if he is obedient and fulfils the rights of all, then he is a pious person since the world has not affected his heart.
9. Today, we all want our children to be pious and obedient. Obedience starts with us. You become pious first, then see how the children will fall in line.
10. There was a king who was afraid of death, so he asked a saintly person for advice. The pious man advised him that the cause of his anxiety was ‘that you have adorned your temporary life which is ending and you have destroyed your hereafter, the life which is forever. So your fear will be removed by adorning the hereafter and shifting your focus away from the world.’ The king then asked the saint how will our meeting with Allah Ta’ala be? – he advised that the obedient person will meet Allah Ta’a’la with the joy that two old friends meet and the disobedient person will meet Allah Ta’ala like a criminal who is dragged for a trial.
11. In the past, wealth and resources were meagre, but people were more conscious and obedient to Allah Ta’ala. Today, resources are plenty, but this has distanced us from Allah Ta’ala.
12. Allah Ta’ala fulfils our needs according to his Wisdom, Allah Ta’ala doesn’t grant us his favours according to our want and desires. A need has a limit and desires have no limits – within each desire there are many more hidden wants and desires.
13. Our aim is to realise our real goals and purpose of life and shift focus away from that which is temporary and mortal.
Muslims First 